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ABOUT THE STORE : NEWSLETTER

DISPATCHES FROM THE BORDER

Events and News from Borderlands Books

August, 2009

Chapter One - Event Information, News, and Special Features

SF in SF presents free movies "The Incredibles" and "The Watchmen" (at the Variety Preview Room in the Hobart Building, 582 Market Street), Wednesday, August 12th at 6:30 pm

SF in SF with authors Elizabeth Lynn and Marta Randall (at the Variety Preview Room in the Hobart Building, 582 Market Street), Saturday, August 22nd at 7:00 pm

Kat Richardson, VANISHED (Roc, Hardcover, $23.95) Saturday, August 29th at 12:00 pm

Serena Valentino, FAIREST OF ALL: A TALE OF THE WICKED QUEEN (Disney, Hardcover, $15.99) Saturday, August 29th at 7:00 pm

Tachyon Publications' 14th Anniversary Party, Sunday, August 30th from 2:00 - 6:00 pm

Seanan McGuire, ROSEMARY AND RUE (DAW, Mass Market, $7.99) Saturday, September 5th at 5:00 pm

Gene O'Neill, A TASTE OF TENDERLOIN (Apex, Trade Paperback, $13.95) Saturday, September 12th at 3:00 pm
 
(for more information check the end of this section)

News

* Charles N. Brown, editor and co-founder of "Locus" Magazine, died in his sleep on his way back from ReaderCon July 12th, 2009.  Borderlands was flattered to be asked to host a touching and sometimes funny memorial for Charles at the store on Sunday, July 26th.  "Locus'" obituary here: <http://www.locusmag.com/News/2009/07/charles-n-brown-1937-2009.html> as well as Gary Wolfe's version of the memorial: <http://www.locusmag.com/Roundtable/2009/07/magus-of-oakland-hills.html> and a link to more tributes: <http://www.locusmag.com/Roundtable/2009/07/catch-ups.html>.

* The Editorial Department, a writing e-zine, interviewed Borderlands' owner Alan Beatts: <http://editorialdepartment.com/publishing-perspectives/879-an-interview-with-alan-beatts.html>

* Carol Berg's FLESH AND SPIRIT and BREATH AND BONE have won the most recent Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature.  For more information and a complete list of winners, see <http://www.mythsoc.org/awards.html>.

* Author and editor Nick Mamatas, who runs Viz Media's Haikasoru imprint, was at Borderlands when the first two Haikasoru titles, THE LORD OF THE SANDS OF TIME and ALL YOU NEED IS KILL, arrived at the store.  Check out their triumphant debut and yet another picture of Ripley! <http://www.haikasoru.com/?p=286>

* Pocket Books has entered into a seven-book deal with tiny Permuted Press, who has long published awesome zombie books including DAY BY DAY ARMAGEDDON by J.L. Bourne. <http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6669916.html?nid=2286&rid=##reg_visitor_id##&source=linkatch-ups.html>

* Thanks to Jay Cornell, who pointed out this blog entry showcasing striking images from one of the world's first pulp fantasy magazines, a German publication called "Der Orchideengarten," which was published between 1919 and 1921: <http://ajourneyroundmyskull.blogspot.com/2009/07/worlds-first-fantasy-magazine-der.html>

* Customer Abner Senires writes science fiction song parodies.  We thought you'd especially enjoy this rousing version of "Cthulhu (Starts With "C")", sung to the tune of "Let It Be": <http://www.abnersenires.com/songs/cthulhu.html>

* From the wacky folks at Quirk Classics (publishers of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES), September brings SENSE AND SENSIBILITY AND SEA MONSTERS.  You can watch the amusing and only slightly gruesome book trailer here: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jZVE5uF24Q>.

* San Francisco's Green Apple Books is presenting a ten-part tongu-in-cheek video "Book vs. Kindle Smackdown" on their website.  They get progressively funnier: <http://thegreenapplecore.blogspot.com/2009/07/book-vs-kindle-part-1-of-10.html>.  Shelf Awareness, a book industry newsletter, says ". . . The idea for the videos came during a conversation between Green Apple's three co- owners and Alex Beckstead, director of the documentary "Paperback Dreams".  Beckstead rents an office at the store and suggested someone take on the Kindle in a video project. While Beckstead provided technological help, Green Apple staffer Roman Honeycutt, who does the store's other promo videos, led the way, and most everyone else at the bookstore (and some of their kids) got into the act. (That's Ryan saying "I never needed a doctor's note for a book" in No. 2.)  "We sat around thinking about everything we hate about the Kindle," Mulvihill said. Still, the group wasn't sure if the printed book would win. "I didn't want to fall in love with the Kindle, but who wouldn't want a cool, hip gadget to read on?" said Mulvihill. "There was a slim chance I'd get addicted to it and then I'd keep it and just not tell anyone about it." (Didn't happen.)  In the end, the staff concluded that in the world of technology, the Kindle feels like the modern-day equivalent of the eight track. (They returned the Kindle.) Green Apple does not expect the smackdown videos will necessarily sell books, but the staff hopes people will pass along the blogs and YouTube links to others not necessarily in the book world."

Cafe News

We're still moving along on the process of getting all of the final inspections out of the way.  There are five inspections that we have to pass to open - Electrical, Plumbing, Fire, Health and Building.  At this point the electrical inspection is done and the plumbing inspection is waiting for one sink to be installed.  The catch is that the sink can't be installed until I build the counter that it's going into.  That counter has been a bit . .  interesting to construct but I finished assembling it last night.  So, sink should go in once I get back from the World Science Fiction convention in Montreal next week.  That'll take care of the plumbing.

The other three inspections all require getting a bunch of small things done.  Fire department needs to have all the doors and windows in place for example, which means I have to finish rebuilding the 100 year old double-hung windows, and the health department needs all the equipment installed before they can sign off, which means that the counters have to be completed so the expresso machine can be connected.  So probably the rest of this month is going to be filled with lots of little jobs.

For all the small impediments there has been some great progress this month --
We have hot water now.
There's a (very) expensive pile of boxes in the kitchen that holds the expresso machine, the coffee maker, and all the associated bits and pieces.
All the ceiling lights are installed.
All the trim, baseboard and door casing is done.

I'm still stubbornly refusing to set a date for the opening until the inspections are done but, with a great deal of luck, I'll have a date next newsletter.  If not then, then the month after.  It all depends on how fast I can get the inspections done.

Best,
Alan

From The Office

I've held out for months now when it comes to talking about ebooks.  After writing so much about them last year, I figured that you all might have had enough and so I switched to other topics.  But the recent kerfluffel about Amazon's remote deletion of books from their Kindle eReader is too interesting to ignore.

For you readers who haven't heard about what happened, I'll summarize briefly (if you've been following the story, please feel free to skip to the next paragraph).  On July 17th, Amazon remotely deleted two books from all the Kindles in the US via the wireless connection that allows Kindle users to brows the internet and purchase books.  In a truly lovely bit of irony, the books were George Orwell's 1984 and ANIMAL FARM.  The reason for the deletion was that the ebook publisher from whom Amazon got the books was based in the UK, where both books are in the public domain (i.e. they may be freely copied, distributed and published by anyone without the need for permission or payment).  However, in the US, the books are still under copyright.  What that meant was that, though the electronic editions were legal outside of the US, they were in violation of copyright _in_ the US.  Amazon was contacted by the US rights-holder (Harper Collins) and told that they couldn't sell that particular electronic edition in the US.  Amazon responded by not only removing the edition from their site, they also remotely deleted it from the Kindle of everyone who had bought it.  Amazon did refund the purchase price of the books to the people who had bought them but despite that many people felt that they had been taken advantage of and that their privacy and property had been violated.

The legality of Amazon's action is debatable but one thing that it points out with clarity is that, despite the marketing hype that presents ebooks as "just like regular books", ebooks bought for the Kindle through Amazon are not at all the same as printed books.

Strangely for a bookseller, I don't have a problem with ebooks.  Don't get me wrong, I think they're going to put most bookstores out of business eventually (how soon, I'm not sure) but overall as a reader I don't think that they are awful or a sign of the end-times for literature or reading.  But, I have a huge problem with ebooks business models like Amazon's which build an unbreakable two-way connection between the reading device and the company providing content.  A good ebook is one that is purchased and can then be read on a number of devices (i.e. a computer, a cell phone, a dedicated reader or other personal electronic devices) without requiring contact or permission from the company that sold the ebook.  For my money, Amazon's model is broken on a very basic level.

Other ebook readers like the Sony eReader <http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&categoryId=8198552921644523779> are stand-alone devices that can be used for any sort of content that the user chooses.  You can load them with books bought from Sony, other ebook publishers like Baen <http://www.baen.com> or Harper Collins <http://www.harpercollins.com/imprints/index.aspx?imprintID=517980>, or free public-domain content from places like Project Gutenberg <http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page> or Feedbooks <http://feedbooks.com/> (a side note about free content from these sites -- many books that Amazon is happy to sell for the Kindle are available for free.  But Amazon not only won't tell you that but they set things up with the Kindle so that you have to jump through a few hoops and pay to get that content on their device).  If Sony goes out of business (not likely) or decides to get out of the ereader-and-book business (more likely), the only ebooks that you might lose the use of are the ones you bought directly from Sony, and the ereader will keep working for as long as it can still function.  Conversely, if Amazon folds or decides to stop supporting the Kindle (which might happen -- Amazon isn't an electronics manufacturer and their reason for creating the Kindle is more about building a market for eBooks than being a electronics manufacturer) books bought for the Kindle are liable to be unusable and completely worthless.  You could have spent a ton of money buying books that someday may be just as outdated and useless as an 8 track tape.

As someone who has seen music formats change from LPs to CDs and then to MP3s and video go from VHS to DVD, I can accept that you have to re-buy things as formats change.  But I'll be damned if I'm going to go through that with my books too.  Especially when there is _no_ reason for it other than Amazon's greed and desire to make their customers dependent on them indefinitely.

And all the forgoing was a problem _before_ Amazon demonstrated that they were willing to do the virtual equivalent of breaking into people houses and taking books off their shelves.  But the recent incident demonstrated yet another problem with Amazon's model.  What else can happen due to the connection between the Kindle and Amazon and the power that it provides?  How about --

* A tell-all account of the Bush or Clinton presidency is published.  One of the subjects of the account sues for Defamation of Character and wins (FYI - that's a civil action which means that all you need to do to win is convince seven out of twelve people that you're right).  As part of the judgement the court orders that the offending chapters be rewritten and, without the consent of the Kindle owner (and possibly even without their knowledge), remotely substituted for the original chapters.

* A controversial book, such as The Turner Diaries or The Autobiography of Malcolm X, is tied to a criminal act and as part of the investigation Amazon (while under a gag order so they can't tell anyone) is compelled to provide not only purchase information about anyone who bought it for the Kindle but also information about how many times it's been read as well as any notes or bookmarks that the individual reader may have added.

* A violation of the contract that you have to sign when purchasing a Kindle gives Amazon the right to not only terminate your use of the Kindle but also delete all your books, lock the device, and lock you out of your Amazon account.  All this without legal recourse or appeal and to correct it you, the user, have to take Amazon to court with the associated costs and headache.

So, if you want to buy ebooks and use a reader, please do so.  There are some great reasons for it and some huge advantages.  But don't get a Kindle.  The Sony reader is better designed and so very much smarter.  Or wait 'til fall and get one of the Apple Tablets.  Sure it's more expensive and uses a LCD screen instead of eInk but it's going to be super-slick and will do _much_ more than any ebook reader out there.

Best,
Alan

Top Sellers At Borderlands

Hardcovers
1. Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie
2. Green by Jay Lake
3. Wireless by Charles Stross
4. Naamah's Kiss by Jacqueline Carey
5. The City & The City by China Mieville
6. By Heresies Distressed by David Weber
7. The Strain by Chuck Hogan and Guillermo del Toro
8. The Steel Remains by Richard Morgan
9. Hylozoic by Rudy Rucker
10. Julian Comstock: A Novel of 22nd Century America by Robert Charles Wilson

Mass Market Paperbacks
1. Implied Spaces by Walter John Williams
2. Saturn's Children by Charles Stross
3. Lightbreaker by Mark Teppo
4. Vicious Circle by Mike Carey
5. The Devil You Know by Mike Carey
6. Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan
7. Jhegaala by Steven Brust
8. Bestial by Ray Garton
9. 1634: The Bavarian Crisis by Eric Flint and Virginia DeMarce
10. Escapement by Jay Lake tie with
      Thirteen Orphans by Jane Lindskold

Trade Paperbacks
1. Footprints edited by Jay Lake and Eric T. Reynolds
2. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
3. Return of the Crimson Guard by Ian Cameron Esslemont
4. World War Z by Max Brooks
5. Mall of Cthulhu by Seamus Cooper tie with
    Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey

Notes From a DVD Geek

Hey everyone.  Summertime is upon us, and while most of the big summer blockbusters have come and gone, there are some absolutely scrumptious movies hitting home video.

Right out of the gate we have a gem of 60's sleeze, with Elio Petri's "The 10th Victim".  Imagine a future where society is so depraved and filled with blood lust that murder is sanctioned as a sport.  The Big Hunt is an international game and its two top assassin/players are played by a Felini Playboy(Marcello Mastroanni from "La Dolce Vita")  and Bond Girl (Ursula Andress of "Dr. No" fame), you've got a recipe for a cult SF classic of distopian sex and violence.  Don't miss this one.

Staying in the 60s, I wanted to mention that Criterion is releasing Roman Polanski's classic movie of psychological horror, "Repulsion," starring Catherine Deneuve.  Polanski, Deneuve, and Criterion?  What could possibly be wrong with this?  Grab it up if you don't already own it.  And even if you do, it might be time to upgrade as this Criterion disc has audio commentary featuring Polanski and Deneuve, as well as both a 2003-era documentary, and a 1964 era documentary, both on the making of this classic piece of film history.

On a slightly different note, a film that may be worth checking out is "Necessary Evil".  It MIGHT be a cookie cutter bio-hazard "'28 Days Later' meets 'Saw'" kind of thing.  But it's got two things that are going to make me put it in my DVD player the day I get it.  Lance Henrikson and Danny Trejo.  Because even if it's a bad movie, there are worse ways to spend 90 minutes then to watch Lance Henrikson and Danny Trejo chew up the scenery.  I'm up for this one.  Anyone else?

Speaking of a different note. . . "Machine Girl" hits DVD this month.  This is the tender story of a young Japanese schoolgirl who gets her arm sawed off by the Yakuza, but survives and returns for a bloody revenge spree, with cyborg-enhanced prosthetics.  Part "Full Metal Yakuza," part "Ms. 45" this movie features cyborg violence galore.  While not by Takashi Mike or anything, this Japanese cult film is by a promising young Japanese exploitation director Noboru Iguchi ("A Larva To Love," and "Cat-Eyed Boy").

Dwayne Johnson (AKA The Rock) "Races to Witch Mountain" this month, on DVD.  The less said about this the better, I guess.  Its main problem is that it is no longer two alien kids lost and alone and getting over. . . It's The Rock, helping kids get over.  Far less compelling then the original, IMO.  But, if you are a fan of "The People's Eyebrow". . . well, I guess there are worse ways to spend your time.

Another very forgettable remake hits the shelves this month.  "The Last House on The Left," AKA "The Last Money Grab Left On The Shelf".  I'm not saying that the original movie is some kind of sacred cow that can never be touched; I'm just saying that if you want to watch this story line over again, go get the Criterion Edition of "Virgin Spring" by Ingmar Bergman and be done with it.

Having just mentioned three clunkers, let me cleanse my typing pallet by mentioning that "Coraline" is out on DVD (and Blue Ray, natch) and it is just as awesome as it was on the big screen.  I myself can take or leave the 3-D effects, but with or without, this is a great movie, and a great adaptation of the Neil Gaimen novel of the same name.  If you somehow missed this one, run out and get it.

Until next time, I am forever yours,  A DVD Geek.

- Jeremy Lassen
jlassen@borderlands-books.com

Book Club Info

The Gay Men's Book Club will meet on Sunday, August 9th at 5 pm to discuss FLORA SEGUNDA by Ysabeau Wilce.  Please contact the group leader, Christopher Rodriguez, at cobalt555@earthlink.net, for more information.

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Club will meet on Sunday, August 16th, at 6 pm to discuss CAMP CONCENTRATION by Thomas Disch.  The book for September is GUN, WITH OCCASIONAL MUSIC by Johnathan Lethem.  Please contact bookclub@borderlands-books.com for more information.

Upcoming Event Details

SF in SF presents free movies "The Incredibles" and "The Watchmen" (at the Variety Preview Room in the Hobart Building, 582 Market Street), Wednesday, August 12th at 6:30 pm - It's washed-up superhero night at the free movies!  Free popcorn! Cash bar!  Bar proceeds and tips benefits Variety Children's Charity.  Doors at 6:00, first movie starts at 6:30 pm.

SF in SF with authors Elizabeth Lynn and Marta Randall (at the Variety Preview Room in the Hobart Building, 582 Market Street), Saturday, August 22nd at 7:00 pm - We are very excited to help SF in SF welcome these authors!  Each author will read a selection from their work, followed by Q&A from the audience moderated by author Terry Bisson.  Authors will schmooze & sign books after in the lounge. Books available for sale courtesy of Borderlands Books.  Seating is limited, so first come, first seated.  Bar proceeds benefit Variety Childrens Charity - learn more at <http://www.varietync.org/>.  We REALLY encourage you to take BART into the City, or use MUNI to get here - parking can be problematic in San Francisco, to say the least.  We are less than one block away from the Montgomery St. station.  Trust us - you don't want to be looking for parking and be late for the event!  Phone (night of event) 415-572-1015.  Questions? Email sfinsfevents@gmail.com.

Kat Richardson, VANISHED (Roc, Hardcover, $23.95) Saturday, August 29th at 12:00 pm - We're delighted to welcome Kat back to the store!  Don't miss this opportunity to meet one of our favorite urbacn fantasy writers.  From the book jacket: "Harper Blaine was your average small-time P.I. until she died - for two minutes. Now Harper is a Greywalker -- walking the line between the living world and the paranormal realm. And she's discovering that her new abilities are landing her in all sorts of "strange cases."  But for Harper, her own case may prove the most difficult to solve. Why did she -- as opposed to others with near-death experiences -- become a Greywalker?  When Harper digs into her own past, she unearths some unpleasant truths about her father's early death as well as a mysterious puzzle. Forced by some very demanding vampires to take on an investigation in London, she soon discovers her present troubles in England are entangled with her dark past back in Seattle -- and her ultimate destiny as a Greywalker."

Serena Valentino, FAIREST OF ALL: A TALE OF THE WICKED QUEEN (Disney, Hardcover, $15.99) Saturday, August 29th at 7:00 pm - From Disney: "FAIREST OF ALL is the story of the Wicked Queen, who she was before, and who she longed to be before she was destroyed by her vanity and the need to murder her daughter Snow White. It is a bloody tale of abuse, heartbreak, love and grief, and the lure of a mysterious man in an enchanted mirror. Beautifully written by Serena Valentino, author of 'Nightmares & Fairy Tales'."  We are delighted to welcome the author of "Gloomcookie" back to Borderlands, this time presenting her first novel!

Tachyon Publications' 14th Anniversary Party, Sunday, August 30th from 2:00 - 6:00 pm - Please join us for the annual Tachyon Publications Anniversary Party, celebrating 14 years of saving the world . . . one good book at a time.  Emperor Norton awards, special Tachyon giveaway, food, drink, and lots of special guests!  More to be announced - keep in touch by checking <http://www.sfinsf.org>, or <http://www.tachyonpublications.com> for updates!  Questions?  Email jw@tachyonpublications.com. You don't want to miss this always-entertaining party.

Seanan McGuire, ROSEMARY AND RUE (DAW, Mass Market, $7.99) Saturday, September 5th at 5:00 pm - We're looking foward to hosting local author Seanan for the debut of her first novel!  Cribbed from her website: "Seanan McGuire was born in Martinez, California, and raised in a wide variety of locations, most of which boasted some sort of dangerous native wildlife. Despite her almost magnetic attraction to anything venomous, she somehow managed to survive long enough to acquire a typewriter, a reasonable grasp of the English language, and the desire to combine the two. The fact that she wasn't killed for using her typewriter at three o'clock in the morning is probably more impressive than her lack of death by spider-bite.  Seanan's first novel, ROSEMARY AND RUE, is an urban fantasy/mystery set in a Bay Area where the world of Faerie is closer than most would care to think.  A member of the changeling underclass, October "Toby" Daye has tried to turn her back on her inhuman origins. . . . but when the death of one of the secret regents of San Francisco drags her back into the thick of things, it's going to take everything she's given up just to stay alive."  Don't miss the opportunity to meet this up-and-coming author, possibly win a raffle prize and likely have some baked goods.  Click here to read an excerpt from the novel: <http://seananmcguire.com/rosemary2.php>.

Gene O'Neill, A TASTE OF TENDERLOIN (Apex, Trade Paperback, $13.95) Saturday, September 12th at 3:00 pm - From Apex: "Eight stories of dark science fiction and fantasy weave a path through the underbelly of San Francisco's most notorious district in TASTE OF TENDERLOIN by Gene O'Neill. Best known for his strong sense of place and uniquely vibrant characters, O'Neill brings the gritty underside of the city to life with eight interwoven stories of broken lives, missed dreams, and all that can go wrong with both reality and fantasy among the down and out. The city itself opens wide to swallow all comers with the temptation of its secrets and sins, while O'Neill brings dignity and humanity to a set of characters often overlooked in both society and fiction."

Borderlands event policy - all events are free of charge.  You are welcome to bring copies of an author's books purchased elsewhere to be autographed (but we do appreciate it if you purchase something while at the event).  For most events you are welcome to bring as many books as you wish for autographs.  If you are unable to attend the event we will be happy to have a copy of any of the author's available books signed or inscribed for you.  We can then either hold it until you can come in to pick it up or we can ship it to you.  Just give us a call or drop us an email.  If you live out of town, you can also ship us books from your collection to be signed.  Call or email for details.

Chapter Two - Book Listings

Small Press Features

MIGHTY UNCLEAN by Gary Braunbeck, Mort Castle, Gemma Files and Cody Goodfellow (Dark Arts, Trade Paperback, $19.95) - From Dark Arts Books: "Unwell. . . Cody Goodfellow wants to introduce you to a goddess who offers unsurpassed pleasure - at an unspeakable price.  Unwise . . . Gemma Files wants you to see what happens when you look too closely into places and things better left unknown.  Unquiet. . . Mort Castle wants to play some unfamiliar music for you. . .  the tunes of the lost and the damned.  Undone. . . Gary A. Braunbeck wants to take you to the edge of madness and perversity. . . and push you over.  From the agony of unrelenting grief to the desperation of spontaneously-combusting convicts, from the grim battle between a human monster and his otherworldy competition to the salacious secret life of Ro-Man(!).  All this and more in strange worlds vividly painted by four supremely talented authors - worlds that are twisted, cruel and mighty unclean."

CANARY FEVER: REVIEWS by John Clute (Beccon, Signed and Numbered Limited Edition (40 copies) Hardcover, $69.80, and Trade Paperback, $33.80) - From Beccon: "Canary Fever is a collection of reviews about the most significant literatures of the twenty-first century: science fiction, fantasy and horror: the literatures Clute argues should be recognized as the central modes of fantastika in our times.  The title refers to the canary in the coal mine, who whiffs gas and dies to save miners; reviewers of fantastika can find themselves in a similar position, though words can only hurt us.  This is the fourth such collection by John Clute.  Several older pieces are included here, though the great bulk of the book - over 200,000 words - was first published between 2003 and 2008. Every review has been edited.  Errors and incoherencies have been removed when possible.  The original versions of some reviews - in particular those written in the past year or so - have been treated as first drafts, and have been brought into final form.  One piece, on John B Watson and Behaviorism, is previously unpublished."

WHO KILLED AMANDA PALMER? by Amanda Palmer and Neil Gaiman (JSR, Hardcover, $34.99) - Gorgeous and scary book of photographs of a variety of "dead" Amandas, with accompanying short stories by Neil Gaiman.  Only a limited number of copies are available from bookstores, and I expect this volume will be very collectible. Recommended by Jude.

SLICES by James A. Moore (Earthling, Signed and Numbered Limited Edition (235 copies) Hardcover, $45.00) - Moore, best known for his horror novels (UNDER THE OVERTREE and the Serenity Falls books come to mind), really shines in the short stories collected here.  Recommended by Jude.

WHAT IT IS WE DO WHEN WE READ SCIENCE FICTION by Paul Kincaid (Beccon, Trade Paperback, $28.80) - From Beccon: "Paul Kincaid is a critic and reviewer - a regular contributor to a variety of magazines and journals, such as the BSFA's Vector, Foundation and the New York Review of Science Fiction. He has also contributed to many SF reference works, and was for 11 years the administrator of the Arthur C. Clarke Award. He is the recipient of the Thomas D. Clareson Award for services to science fiction. His essay "Blank Pages" (included in this collection) was on the Recommended Reading list for the BSFA Non-Fiction Award, as was The Arthur C. Clarke Award: A Critical Anthology which he co-edited with Andrew M. Butler.  This is his first collection of essays."

COLD TO THE TOUCH by Simon Strantzas (Tartarus Press, Limited Edition (300 copies) Hardcover, $45.00) - From Tartarus Press: "Reality is a thin translucent membrane that separates this world from the one beyond, and that membrane bends and buckles as we thrust ourselves against it. Through the barrier we see distorted visions, the merest glimpse of which is enough to infect our minds. . . . Thirteen tales of strangeness and surrealism await the reader of this book; stories of loss, despair, and what happens when those without hope meet that which they cannot understand.  Two women vacationing far away encounter the mysteries of island life. . . . A trip north of the city to woods and a lake and a sky hungry for more. . . . Snow is falling, reminding the dying of all they've lost, or the young of all they have yet to lose. . . . The other world, it awaits you in the dark, cold to the touch."

THE VERY BEST OF GENE WOLFE by Gene Wolfe (PS Publishing, Signed and Numbered Limited Edition (500 copies) Hardcover, $75.00) - From PS Publishing: "Gene Wolfe, renowned for his fine storytelling and the subtlety of his prose, is regarded by many as one of America's finest living authors of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. His multi-volume novels, such as THE BOOK OF THE NEW SUN, THE WIZARD KNIGHT, and the CHRONICLES OF LATRO, stand as landmarks of fantastic literature. And Wolfe's short fiction, eloquent, humane, cunning, has enjoyed enormous praise too. Thus THE VERY BEST OF GENE WOLFE, a massive career retrospective featuring thirty-two stories chosen by the master as his finest, is a genuine literary event."

New and Notable

BEST SERVED COLD by Joe Abercrombie (Gollancz, Signed First Edition UK Hardcover, $23.44, and Orbit, First Edition US Hardcover, $24.99) - Alan, Cary and I have all gone on at great length to anyone who will listen about exactly how awesome, grim, violent and funny this novel is, but now it's actually available!  BEST SERVED COLD is what you'd get if you crossed George R.R Martin with a Sergio Leone revenge Western.  Recommended repeatedly by Alan, Cary and Jude.

DEAD MEN'S BOOTS by Mike Carey (Grand Central, Hardcover, $25.99) - Mike Carey's Felix Castor novels, about a freelance exorcist in London, just keep getting better.  This is number three in the series, and if we haven't hooked you on these noir-ish, darkly funny urban fantasies yet, you're missing out, so start with THE DEVIL YOU KNOW and catch up quick!  Recommended by Alan, Cary and Jude.

THE WINDS OF DUNE by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson (Tor, Signed First Edition, $27.99) - This novel chronicles the events that occur between DUNE MESSIAH and CHILDREN OF DUNE.  We have just a few signed copies, so reserve yours today!

JOHANNES CABAL THE NECROMANCER by Jonathan L. Howard (Doubleday, Hardcover, $25.00) - A very funny debut novel about an ethics-challenged necromancer and his wager with the Devil.  Even though the plots are nothing alike, I believe this Faustian book will appeal to fans of JONATHAN STRANGE AND MR. NORRELL, and in any case it is very enjoyable.  Recommended by Jude.

THE KINGDOM BEYOND THE WAVES by Stephen Hunt (Tor, Hardcover, $25.99) - Set in the same world as THE COURT OF THE AIR.

WILDFIRE by Sarah Micklem (Scribner, Hardcover, $26.00) - The dark, troubling, and lovely sequel to FIRETHORN.  Like its predecessor, WILDFIRE is a difficult book about a strong woman in an utterly male-dominated society.  Recommended by Jude.

NIGHTS OF VILLJAMUR by Mark Charan Newton (Tor UK, Hardcover, $29.10) - Thanks to customer John Villandre for bringing this one to my attention. . .it's next on the "To Be Read" tower.  From the cover: "Political intrigue and dark violence converge in a superb new action series of enthralling fantasy.  An ice age strikes a chain of islands, and thousands come to seek sanctuary at the gates of Villjamur: a city of ancient spires and bridges, a place where banshees wail the deceased, cultists use forgotten technology for their own gain and where, further out, the dead have been seen walking across the tundra. When the Emperor commits suicide, his elder daughter, Rika, is brought home to lead the Jamur Empire, but the sinister Chancellor plans to get rid of her and claim the throne for himself. Meanwhile a senior investigator in the city inquisition must solve the high-profile and savage murder of a city politician, whilst battling evils within his own life, and a handsome and serial womanizer manipulates his way into the imperial residence with a hidden agenda.  When reports are received that tens of thousands of citizens are dying in a bizarre genocide on the northern islands of the Empire, members of the elite Night Guard are sent to investigate. It seems that, in this land under a red sun, the long winter is bringing more than just snow."

VANISHED - GREYWALKER VOL. 4 by Kat Richardson (Roc, Hardcover, $23.95) - Kat Richardson writes some of my favorite "paranormal detective" stories.  In this fourth installment in the Greywalker series, Harper Blaine delves into her own past and the reasons that she -- as opposed to others who also had near-death experiences -- became a Greywalker.  Meet Kat at the store Saturday, August 29th at noon!

EYE OF THE STORM by John Ringo (Baen, Hardcover, $26.00) - Wow, when did we get to number 11(!) in the Posleen books?  This volume brings together threads from several previous novels (and collaborations).  Perfect beach reading.

TREASON'S SHORE by Sherwood Smith (DAW, Hardcover, $25.95) - I adore Sherwood Smith, and she can't write fast enough for me!  From the jacket: "Inda, fresh from his triumph on the battlefield against the Venn, takes his place beside King Evred as Harskialdna, the King's Shield.  But the Venn are far from defeated and only Inda's fame is strong enough to inspire all the squabbling kingdoms to unite and raise a force mighty enough to protect the strait and repel the enemy.  Evred has also ordered Inda to take over the strait once the battle is won, but Inda, a former pirate, knows that this is a very bad idea.  Now Inda must choose between obeying his liege -- or committing treason."

WIRELESS by Charles Stross (Ace, Hardcover, $24.95) - A collection of previously unpublished short stories from the wildly popular author of SINGULARITY SKY.

This newsletter is distributed monthly free of charge and may be distributed without charge so long all the following information is included.

Dispatches from the Border
Editor - Jude Feldman
Assistant Editor - Alan Beatts
Contributors - Jeremy Lassen, Christopher Hsiang

All contents unless otherwise noted are the property of

Borderlands Books
866 Valencia St.
San Francisco, CA  94110
415-824-8203
http://www.borderlands-books.com

Comments and suggestions should be directed to editor@borderlands-books.com

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